England coach Matthew Mott says "the door is always open" for Ben Stokes to reverse his ODI retirement and play at the Cricket World Cup later this year.

All-rounder Stokes brought an end to his 50-over international career in July because of an "unsustainable" schedule alongside his Test captaincy.

However, the 31-year-old recently suggested he may potentially consider representing England at the World Cup in Pakistan in October and November.

Mott is hopeful that will be the case and will not rush Stokes – the man of the match when England beat New Zealand in the 2019 final – into making a decision.

"The door is always open for a player of that quality but we are also very aware that his main focus is red ball cricket as the captain," he told reporters. 

"We respect that and when he's ready to chat, we'll do that."

Asked if there will be a cut-off point for Stokes to decide what he wants to do, Mott said: "I've had some good discussions with Jos [Buttler] and Rob Key on this.

"Players are playing a lot of franchise cricket, coming in and out at different times, so we need to keep a really flexible, open mind to players. 

"When we sit down to pick that 15 for the World Cup, we want to pick the best players possible."

Mott was speaking ahead of England's three-match ODI series against South Africa, which begins in Bloemfontein on Friday.

Stokes may not be present, but fast bowler Jofra Archer is in line for his first international appearance since March 2021 after recovering from a series of injury setbacks.

"Having watched him from a distance, I think he's one of the most exciting things to have happened in cricket for the last decade. It will be great to have him," Mott said.

"He's full throttle, fast and brings such energy. He is one of those guys that if you are there sitting in the pub and he's bowling, you're watching. That's a big thing to have.

"Everyone here will get a lift around bowlers like him. He's spent a lot of time out and I know he's absolutely frothing to play."

India wicketkeeper Rishabh Pant is to be airlifted from Dehradun to Mumbai in order to undergo further surgery following his car crash in December.

The 25-year-old was hospitalised following a collision late last month, suffering injuries to his head, knee and foot.

Pant was initially treated in his hometown of Roorkee, near the accident, before being moved for further work to Dehradun.

But now the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has confirmed he is to be flown to Mumbai in order to be nearer to their own empanelled medical team.

"Rishabh will undergo surgery and subsequent procedures for ligament tears and will continue to be monitored by the BCCI Medical Team throughout his recovery and rehabilitation," it said in a statement.

"The Board will make every effort to aid and expedite the recovery process of Rishabh and will provide him with all the support he needs during this period."

There is no further prognosis on Pant's recovery period.

Jos Buttler does not know if he will return to the Test fold for England, stressing his focus remains firmly on white-ball cricket ahead of next year's World Cup defence.

Having led his side to success in the T20 World Cup last month in Australia, the wicket-keeper-batsman will look to defend the 50-over trophy he won as part of Eoin Morgan's side in 2019 next October.

Buttler's commitments to the sport's shorter formats has seen him kept out of the red-ball game, having last played for the Test team in January.

With the World Cup now 10 months away, the 32-year-old is not ruling out a return, but says it is not a priority with his other commitments.

"We will wait and see [but] I don't know for the minute, to be honest," he told Sky Sports News.

"I am really enjoying what I'm doing at the moment, and getting the opportunity to captain the white-ball teams has been a great challenge and really enjoyable.

"The attention turns to the 50-over World Cup and trying to think ahead and planning how we tackle that tournament. We've had a couple of retirements from the side, some stalwarts in Stokes and Morgan.

"We've got to work out how we fill that hole and give guys the opportunity to take those positions up and look to build a balanced team ahead of the tournament."

Test skipper Ben Stokes has retired from the ODI format since succeeding Joe Root as red-ball captain, but has not ruled out coming back into the fold for the World Cup.

Buttler would not be drawn on whether he would reverse his decision, however, adding: "He's got lots on his plate captaining the Test team and obviously some exciting series coming up with the Ashes next year especially.

"We'll just plan ahead and give guys the opportunity and things will work themselves out naturally.

"I think over the next six to eight months, guys will perform really well and put their hand up and try to stake a claim for those positions."

Ben Stokes remained non-committal on his England future in ODI cricket but refused to rule out a possible return for the Cricket World Cup in 2023.

The 31-year-old called time on his 50-over international career in July as he cited an "unsustainable" workload alongside his Test captaincy commitments and T20 interests.

Stokes subsequently guided England to their second T20 World Cup title with a vital 52 not out to help Matthew Mott's side to a five-wicket victory over Pakistan in the November 13 final.

The star all-rounder will turn his attention to the first Test against Pakistan, which will start on either Thursday or Friday depending on England's fitness after a viral outbreak in the tourist's camp.

But Stokes, speaking on Wednesday, left the door open for a potential return to 50-over cricket – the format in which he powered England to Cricket World Cup glory in 2019.

"[Rob Key] pulled me to the side and as soon as he said '50-over World Cup' I just walked away," the England Test captain said.

"Who knows? At the moment, being out here, my focus is solely on this series.

"Going to a World Cup is an amazing thing to do, to represent your country. But at the moment I'm not even thinking about that."

Next year's schedule leaves the opportunity for Stokes to reverse his retirement decision, given a large portion of England's contests are loaded into the front half of 2023.

A two-Test tour of New Zealand in February follows after three red-ball outings against Pakistan before the start of the Indian Premier League, which Stokes has put himself forward for in the draft.

England then face Ireland in a four-day Test as a warm-up for The Ashes at home against Australia, which will be finished by the end of July, with four T20Is to follow against New Zealand.

Should Stokes have a change of heart on his decision, six ODIs split between the Black Caps and Ireland across September would serve as a perfect warm-up for October's Cricket World Cup in India.

Kane Williamson will continue to represent New Zealand in all three formats despite his T20I future being questioned following the Black Caps' World Cup exit earlier this month.

Williamson captained his country on their run to the last four at the tournament in Australia, where they suffered a seven-wicket loss to eventual runners-up Pakistan.

That defeat represented the latest tournament shortfall for New Zealand, who also lost last year's T20 World Cup final to Australia and finished as runners-up to England in 2019's 50-over World Cup.  

At the age of 32, Williamson accepts he must manage his workload, but he will not follow the lead of international team-mate Trent Boult by being selective regarding which formats he plays.

"I love all the formats, for different reasons. In fact, playing the three and changing between them is a challenge that is enjoyable," Williamson told ESPNcricinfo. 

"But having said that, there is a balance to strike in terms of just general volume [of cricket], and that's important.

"Everybody is a little bit challenged by that, certainly some of the players that may have done it for a long time, and you're always looking to be clear with that direction – to stay fresh and focused on what is most important with your involvement in any team." 

World Test champions New Zealand have finished as runners-up at three World Cups across the two shortened formats since 2015, but Williamson is not thinking about the prospect of a transitional period as the country's golden generation comes to an end.

"You sort of hope that whilst you're here, and trying to do as well as you can as a team with all the other individuals involved, that there's a real effort to try and grow the game," he added.

"To try and play your role to the best of your ability, to try and improve as much as you can as a player, hopefully that sort of adds to the depth of cricket that we have.

"Focusing on what's in front of you is what's really important, and in years to come there'll be transition, or there's perhaps transition a little bit earlier – that's always there.

"That's always happening in professional sport, and whoever the next group or crop are, I'm sure they'll have a lot of motivation to want to get better as a team and go even further as a side."

New Zealand will look to bounce back from their World Cup exit when they host the first of three T20Is against India on Friday, with that series being swiftly followed by three ODI meetings. 

England's T20 World Cup success can be used as a springboard to cement their status as one of the all-time great white-ball sides, believes Ryan Sidebottom.

A five-wicket win over Pakistan in Melbourne means Jos Buttler's side are the first men's team to hold both major ICC titles, having won the 50-over World Cup in 2019 on home soil.

Victory in Australia means England become just the second team to win the T20 World Cup twice, with Sidebottom having been a member of the 2010 title-winning side.

A failure to capitalise on that initial success meant it was the best part of a decade before they triumphed again in limited-overs cricket, but the former Yorkshire bowler thinks they are primed to push on this time.

"When we won it in 2010, we had an opportunity to go on and build, get better as a nation and we kind of got left behind again," he told Stats Perform.

"But now we have a huge opportunity to become the best, [to be] number one in the world in all formats. We've got the players, we've got the facilities now.

"I think we've got everything. We can achieve great things. I really believe that if we keep moving forward and keep striving to get better and better."

No small part of England's success came from the performances of Sam Curran, with the Surrey all-rounder named player of the tournament for his performances with the ball.

Having been far from an assured first-choice pick before arriving in Australia, the 24-year-old has effectively cemented his place, with Sidebottom feeling he is an invaluable piece of the puzzle now.

"I think he's been amazing," he added. "He's improved so much as a cricket. You throw the ball to Sam Curran, and he makes things happen.

"That's quite a rare commodity for someone. You know he's either going to take a wicket or do something very special. [England] have so many left-armers, but he's been the pick of everyone."

England limited-overs coach Matthew Mott hopes he can lure Ben Stokes out of ODI retirement ahead of the Cricket World Cup in 2023.

Star all-rounder Stokes called an end to his 50-over international career in July as he suggested the workload amid a packed schedule was "unsustainable" alongside his Test captaincy.

The 31-year-old did not bow out of the shortest format, though, and proved his white-ball worth with a vital 52 not out in Sunday's T20 World Cup final victory over Pakistan.

Stokes became just the third player to score 50-plus runs in finals of both an ODI World Cup and a T20 World Cup, having starred against New Zealand in the dramatic Lord's showpiece in 2019.

England are the first side to boast duel limited-overs titles at the same time, and Mott hopes he can convince Stokes to return to defend their ODI crown in India next year.

"When he spoke to me about his ODI retirement, one of the first things I said was that I'd back any decision he made," Mott told Sky Sports.

"He didn't necessarily have to retire, he could just not play 50 overs for a while. I did say 'you could always un-retire'. It's his decision. He'll do what's right for English cricket and he always has.

"It's going to be a World Cup year and we don't play much T20 cricket for a while but it will be a decision that's up to him. The more we can get him is great. He's a world-class player.

"He's doing an amazing job with the Test captaincy but he is a very big cog in the wheel when he comes back to white ball. I can't speak more highly of the way he's been around this group."

Stokes and Sam Curran, who took the second-most wickets by a pace bowler (13) at an edition of the T20 World Cup, both delivered on the biggest stage for England.

But Mott also pinpointed the influential figures of Reece Topley and Jonny Bairstow, who both missed the tournament in Australia due to injury.

"Reece Topley was a big part of our preparation for here," the Australian added. "I was absolutely gutted for him, such an innocuous injury. Seeing him leave our group was hard.

"I must admit he was one of the first blokes I thought of (after England's win) – and Jonny as well.

"Those guys, it's hard for them when you prepare so much to do something like this, and they don't come round that often, to have to miss that opportunity is heartbreaking."

England's success Down Under could be somewhat credited to Australia, though, given Mott was partnered by Mike Hussey and David Saker in his coaching setup.

"Players make coaches, coaches don't make players at this level," Mott continued "There's no doubt it was a real advantage in Australia to have some Australian coaches around.

"A lot of people just said I got my mates in to do the role. But both of those appointments were suggested by players within our group and had worked with both of them before."

India captain Rohit Sharma admits his side failed to handle the pressure of knockout cricket as they lost by 10 wickets to England in the T20 World Cup semi-finals.

A record-breaking opening stand from captain Jos Buttler (80 not out) and Alex Hales (86 not out) saw the Group 2 winners shattered at the Adelaide Oval.

The pair's stand of 170 set a record for the highest partnership in T20 World Cup history, beating the 168 put on by South Africa duo Quinton de Kock and Rilee Rossouw against Bangladesh last month.

Rohit – a member of the India team that won the inaugural edition of the tournament in 2007, their only tournament triumph to date – admitted his side did not do themselves justice on the biggest stage in the end.

"When it comes to knockout stages, it is all about handling that pressure," he said. "You cannot really teach how to handle pressure.

"All these guys have played enough cricket to understand that. It's all about handling pressure and keeping calm.

"Look at the [group] stages, when we won that first game, we showed a lot of character. We handled it pretty well, [we] executed our plans.

"It's all about executing [that]. If you don't execute, you'll find yourself in trouble. It's really disappointing how we turned up.

"We were not good enough with the ball. It was not a wicket where a team should chase us down in 16 [or] 17 overs. We just didn't turn up."

England will now face Pakistan in Sunday's final at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, while India will turn their attention to a red-ball tour of New Zealand, starting next week.

New Zealand captain Kane Williamson says defeat to Pakistan is "a tough pill to swallow" following his side's seven-wicket loss in the T20 World Cup semi-finals in Sydney.

The Black Caps suffered another piece of knockout stage heartbreak in a major tournament after they were chased down at the Sydney Cricket Ground with five balls to spare.

Following defeat in last year's T20 World Cup final to Australia, it marks the latest shortfall for New Zealand in competition cricket, having also been edged in the 2019 World Cup final by England in the 50-over format.

Williamson had no qualms in saying their opponents were the better side on the day, Pakistan reaching a target of 153, but after another missed opportunity he acknowledged it was a hard loss to take.

"I thought Pakistan played nicely and then we managed to wrestle back some momentum," he said after Mohammad Rizwan (57) and Babar Azam (53) ended his side's chances.

"We were put under pressure early, they bowled really well.

"It was thanks to an unbelievable knock from Daryl Mitchell we got some momentum back. At halfway, we thought it [152-4] was a competitive total because we knew the pitch was a used surface - it was tough.

"But it's really disappointing to not make Pakistan work harder for those runs. They were absolutely outstanding and credit has to go to them.

"It is a tough pill to swallow. Babar and Rizwan put us under pressure but if we are honest with ourselves, we should have been more disciplined.

"They deserved to be the winners of that game.

"We have played a lot of good cricket, we have stuck to what has given us a lot of success, but today we weren't at our best. We know the fickle nature of T20 cricket."

Pakistan captain Babar Azam urged his side to relish the moment after reaching their first T20 World Cup final in 13 years with victory over New Zealand.

A wonderful opening stand of 105 from the skipper and Mohammad Rizwan (57) guided them to a seven-wicket victory over the Black Caps in the first semi-final in Sydney, as they successfully chased down 153.

It sends Pakistan into the tournament's showpiece game for the first time since 2009, when they defeated Sri Lanka by eight wickets at Lord's to lift the trophy for the first and only time in their history.

Having sneaked into the semi-finals thanks to a shock South Africa collapse against the Netherlands in Group 2, Babar's side could now go all the way - and he says they will celebrate their achievement justly.

"We will enjoy this moment, but at the same time we will focus on the final," Babar said after scoring 53 from 42 balls.

"The way the team performed in the last three matches [has been incredible]. Thanks to the crowd, it feels like we are playing at home.

"We had a really good start with the first six overs, we knew our spinners could then come on later. We were happy to chase around 150.

"Then we had a plan before the chase to attack the first six overs, so we could get the momentum. We knew later on the other players could chip in.

"We don't know who we've got yet, so we will be watching tomorrow, but we have got a few days to get together and discuss that game."

Pakistan will await either India or England, who meet on Thursday in the second semi-final in Adelaide.

Sri Lanka have suspended batter Danushka Gunathilaka indefinitely after he was refused bail in a Sydney court after being charged over an alleged sexual assault.

Gunathilaka has been charged with four counts of sexual intercourse without consent while at the T20 World Cup in Australia.

The 31-year-old was taken into custody following his country's final World Cup game against England.

Gunathilaka was denied bail initially on Sunday, and was refused again on Monday in court.

A statement from Sri Lanka Cricket's governing board read: "The Executive Committee of Sri Lanka Cricket decided to suspend national player Danushka Gunathilaka from all forms of cricket with immediate effect.

"Furthermore, Sri Lanka Cricket will take the necessary steps to promptly carry out an inquiry into the alleged offense, and, upon conclusion of the aforementioned court case in Australia, steps will be taken to penalize the said player if found guilty.

"Sri Lanka Cricket wishes to emphasize that it adopts a "zero tolerance" policy for any such conduct by a player and will provide all the required support to the Australian law enforcement authorities to carry out an impartial inquiry into the incident."

Gunathilaka was ruled out of the T20 World Cup through injury last month after facing Namibia and had remained in camp with the rest of the squad.

He only returned to the Sri Lanka team after a year-long ban for breaking bio-secure bubble conditions during the COVID-19 pandemic was lifted prematurely in January.

Gunathilaka was a member of the squad that won the Asia Cup in September, and had been expected to feature regularly across the T20 World Cup until his injury.

Suryakumar Yadav's unbeaten half-century saw India top Group 2 at the T20 World Cup as they set up a semi-final clash with England following a comfortable 71-run victory over Zimbabwe in Melbourne.

Heading into Sunday's game, Rohit Sharma's side knew their place in the last four was already secured after South Africa fell to a shock loss against the Netherlands earlier in the day.

But with top spot on the line after Pakistan comprehensively beat Bangladesh by five wickets, India knew they would need to post a similarly convincing win to overhaul their rivals.

They responded to the challenge with impressive power, guided by a freewheeling 61 not out off 25 balls for Yadav, ably supported by earlier knocks for KL Rahul (51) and Virat Kohli (26) to post a fearsome 186-5.

Sean Williams posted Zimbabwe's best bowling figures with 2-9, but could not help his side avoid leaking runs, and any prospect of a Zimbabwe chase appeared slim when Wesley Madhevere was caught first ball.

Sikandar Raza (34) and Ryan Burl (35) were valiant in pursuit, but India were out of sight thanks to a bowling attack led by Ravichandran Ashwin (3-22), to set up a showdown with England in Adelaide next week.

Yadav steadies fort after early wobbles

There was one nervy moment for India as they lost three wickets – Kohli, Rahul and Rishabh Pant – for 14 runs in a flash, slipping from 87-1 to 101-4.

But Yadav's emphatic turn ensured India put up a daunting total that proved well beyond Zimbabwe.

Zimbabwe head home on a whimper

Having delivered one of the shocks of the tournament when they edged Pakistan by one run, a result that seemingly took the latter out of semi-final consideration at one point, this was a lacklustre final bow from Zimbabwe.

Though Craig Ervine's side were always likely to face an uphill battle to chase down India, their poor choices combined with a lethal opposition bowling attack left them with their lowest full-innings total at this year's T20 World Cup.

South Africa captain Temba Bavuma says he will not make an "emotional" decision over his future as skipper after his side's shock exit from the T20 World Cup.

The Proteas fumbled their final game against an impressive Netherlands side, coming up short in a 13-run loss that allowed Pakistan to capitalise and leapfrog them into the top two.

That sends the latter and India through to join New Zealand and England in the knockout stages of this year's tournament, leaving South Africa out in the cold after just two wins.

Having missed out on qualification to the semi-finals a year ago following an inferior net run rate, it marks the second successive T20 World Cup in which they have underperformed, but Bavuma is in no rush to decide his next steps.

"It's been a tricky time," he stated. "To be considering that now, a lot of it will be emotional, in terms of my role as captain within the team. It's something I will think about. I will speak to the relevant people.

"We have to see who comes in as a coach. Generally when you have changes like that, they might come in with a different style.

"They might find a different leader to execute whatever vision or style of play that they have. It will be emotional now if I think about all of that."

Bavuma admitted the burden of captaincy amid frustrating tournaments for his side had been near the front of his thoughts, adding: "Mentally, it does eat at you as a player.

"You try to manage your mental space as much as you can. You try to control what gets to you but with social media, whatever is being said out there always gets to you.

"I always try to keep a level head, through all the good and the bad times. I try to be as close to myself as possible. Not just for myself but for this group. We are going to take a lot of flack as a group and rightly so."

Sri Lanka batsman Danushka Gunathilaka has been arrested in Sydney over allegations of sexual assault following his side's exit from the T20 World Cup.

The 31-year-old is due in court on November 7 after he was taken into custody by Australian authorities following his country's final Group 1 game against England.

Gunathilaka, who had been originally named in the squad but was ruled out through injury in October, had remained with the team during their campaign.

In a brief statement, Sri Lanka Cricket confirmed it had been informed of the player's charges, and would conduct its own investigation alongside that of the police.

"Sri Lanka Cricket confirms that it was notified by the ICC that player Danushka Gunathilaka has been arrested on the allegations of sexual assault of a woman in Sydney, and Mr. Gunathilaka is due to appear in court tomorrow (7 November ,2022)," it said.

"SLC will closely monitor the proceedings in court and, in consultation with the ICC, will expeditiously initiate a thorough inquiry into the matter and take stern action against the player if found guilty."

Gunathilaka was suspended from international cricket for a year by Sri Lanka after breaking the team's bio-secure bubble during their tour of England amid the COVID-19 pandemic last year.

His ban was lifted early, In January, and he was included in the nation's Asia Cup-winning squad in September.

Sri Lanka fell short of the knockout stages at the tournament following their four-wicket loss to England, with the latter and New Zealand progressing to the semi-finals.

 

Glenn Maxwell posted an unbeaten half-century as Australia edged Afghanistan in a four-run victory to boost their T20 World Cup semi-final chances at Adelaide Oval.

The defending champions, skippered by stand-in Matthew Wade in the absence of the injured Aaron Finch, set a total of 168-8 thanks to a fine 54 not out from their middle-order batsman.

With handy support from Mitchell Marsh (45) and Marcus Stoinis (25), the hosts seldom looked as if they would be seriously troubled by their Group 1 rivals.

But Naveen-ul-Haq's tidy figures of 3-21 gave Afghanistan an achievable target to chase, and a strong third-wicket partnership between Gulbadin Naib (39) and Ibrahim Zadran (26) kept them firmly in the hunt.

After Maxwell effected a run-out of the former, a top-order collapse appeared to spell the end for Mohammad Nabi's side, but a thrilling final burst from Rashid Khan (48) guided them close to an upset with a 164-7 finish.

Success vaults Australia into the top two for now, but their progress to the last four will only be confirmed if England fail to overcome Sri Lanka in Sydney on Saturday, due to an inferior net run rate.

Magic Maxwell spares blushes

Make no mistake, this was far from a poor Australia performance, but with a negative net run rate at the end, it was not quite up to the mark they would have hoped to achieve.

No accusations can be levelled at Maxwell, however, whose knock off 32 balls was arguably trumped in importance by his direct hit to dismiss Naib, stopping Afghanistan's momentum and turning the tide.

Khan showcases stirring stuff

Few players are quite as exciting to watch as the Afghanistan man when he is in full flight, and so it proved again after he set up a surprisingly tense finale.

His innings, taken off 23 balls with four maximums, was up there with the best at this tournament. 

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